# Squid (DC Comics)

The Squid is the name of different characters appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The first Squid is a crime lord named Lawrence Loman who is an enemy of Batman.

## Publication history

The first Squid debuted in Detective Comics #497 (December 1980) and was created by Gerry Conway and Don Newton.
The second Squid debuted in Adventure Comics #490 (February 1982) and was created by E. Nelson Bridwell and Carmine Infantino.

## Fictional character biography
### Lawrence Loman

Lawrence Loman, also known as Clement Carp, is a crime lord and criminal in Gotham City. Following the defeat of Rupert Thorne and Tony Falco, Loman attempts to fill the resulting power vacuum and battles Batman before his former gang member Killer Croc kills him.
Following the fall of Rupert Thorne and Tony Falco, he was poised to fill the vacuum left by Rupert Thorne and Tony Falco. He sets up a hideout in an old warehouse near the piers. He also was able to capture a giant squid which he named "Gertrude", which he kept in a huge aquarium in his hideout, usually feeding his foes to it. In an attempt to gain control of the Gotham underworld, he and his crew succeeded in capturing Batman and feeding him to Gertude. Batman was able to barely escape from the tank with his life. Eventually the villain Killer Croc (who was once a part of the Squid's gang) kills the Squid by shooting him from a rooftop.
In Post-Crisis continuity (as seen in 52), the Squid returned and was one of the crime bosses sought out/captured by Bruno Mannheim of the Intergang. Some of the crime bosses refused to join Intergang and were killed for that, but the Squid's final fate was unknown.
In 2011, "The New 52" rebooted the DC universe. The Squid is re-established with a different appearance. Once again, he has a pet giant squid (who is also named Gertrude) which he uses to dispatch his foes. He was seen peddling a new drug called "Icarus" throughout the streets of Chinatown.

### Unnamed alien

The second character called "The Squid" is an alien who arrived on Earth with Abyss to commit a string of robberies. They start in Fairfax which was home to Chris King and Vicki Grant. Chris and Vicki used their H-Dials to combat Squid and Abyss where they ended up defeating them. Squid tried to flee using one of Abyss's portals to return to his homeworld, but the Abyss was disoriented at the time, and sent the Squid to someplace else, the precise details unknown even to Abyss himself.
In 2011, "The New 52" rebooted the DC universe. Squid was first seen as a captive of Ex Nihilo. He later escapes from his cage and kills Darren Hirsch upon infiltrating the hospital that he is in. Upon using the special phone booth to turn into Iron Snail, Nelson Jent fought Squid. Because Nelson felt his Iron Squid form about to change back, he fled the battle. Squid then makes his way to the office of Dr. Ward who is the true identity of Ex Nihilo. Squid leaves telling Dr. Ward that the source of the comas is coming back.
Nelson Jent's Baroness Regine form and Manteau later encounter Squid and Ex Nihilo at Mr. King's apartment where they witness the return of Abyss.
Ex Nihilo was revealed to have been the one who saved Squid from falling through the half-formed worlds to bring Abyss to them. After Squid shoots ink at Nelson, he and Dr. Ward get away as it is shown that Dr. Ward has an H-Dial. Squid later visits Nelson and admits his regret over killing Darren. They agree that Ex Nihilo must be stopped before Abyss is angered further.
Nelson Jent in a makeshift costume helps Squid rescue Manteau. Ex Nihilo later manipulates the permeating holes in Squid's body putting him in a lot of pain. After Abyss was defeated, Squid passed away.

## Powers and abilities

The first Squid is an expert at leadership skills and espionage.
The second Squid can project deadly ink with various properties.

## In other media

The Lawrence Loman incarnation of Squid appears in The Penguin, portrayed by Jared Abrahamson.